Vice President, Kashim Shettima, has assured players of the Super Eagles and their officials that the Federal Government would compensate them for their efforts at the 34th Africa Cup of Nations, which ended in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire, on Sunday.
   
Nigeria lost 1-2 to hosts, Cote d’Ivoire, in the final held at the Allasane Quattara Stadium, Ebimpe, Abidjan. Speaking to the team inside their dressing room at the stadium after the game, Shettima told them to cheer up and see their second-place finish as an achievement, which so many other countries could not attain.
 
“We tried our best and there is always a next time. As former President of Moorehouse College, Atlanta, Benjamin Mays, said, you must bear in mind that the tragedy of life is not in not reaching a goal, but in not having a goal to reach. It is not a calamity to die with dreams unfulfilled, but it is a calamity to not have a dream to fulfil. It is not a disaster to be unable to capture your ideal, it is a disaster not to have an ideal to capture.”
   
He assured them that their names would be written in gold in the history of Nigerian football, adding: “I convey to you the best wishes of President Bola Tinubu. There is no reason for you to be sad. The nation will adequately compensate you for your sacrifices for the country.
 
“You left your clubs and families to serve Nigeria, and Nigeria is grateful.”